


and i know it makes you nervous (but i promise you it’s worth it)

by literatily



Category: Girl Meets World
Genre: AU, Angst, F/M, Fluff, Hurricane, Idiots in Love, Storm - Freeform, gmw, inspired by Superstore, lucaya - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-08
Updated: 2019-01-08
Packaged: 2019-10-06 19:05:46
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,350
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17350877
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/literatily/pseuds/literatily
Summary: Lucas and Maya have barely spoken since Lucas chose Riley. When they’re stuck together during a hurricane, secrets are bound to come out.





	and i know it makes you nervous (but i promise you it’s worth it)

**Author's Note:**

> Another fic? So soon? Who is she?

“A hurricane is brewing in the Atlantic. Meteorologists predict it’ll hit New York state in the next 32 hours…”

Lucas sighed, picking up the remote and turning off the television. He was putting away groceries his mom had just bought, only half-listening to the news. It had been raining for three days straight already, and the hurricane had been discussed for almost a week before the rain had began. He figured it would’ve hit already. It was mid-April, which wasn’t when hurricanes usually hit. Lucas was fairly confident that it would all be fine. Hopefully, the rain would fade out and the hurricane wouldn’t hit. Lucas wasn’t a big fan of rain. Unlike some of his friends, he found it tended to put him in a downtrodden mood. Despite the fact that Lucas worried about a lot of things every day, he didn’t find himself obsessing over the hurricane that wouldn’t hit.

He didn’t have the time to worry about that, anyway. Maya was coming over to work on their project for AP US history, so he would be distracted from the gloomy weather outside. She was going to be there at 4:20pm, which was only 20 minutes away. They had gotten out of school early, as the administrators were worried about the storm. It was a Friday, anyway, so everyone was anxious to leave, even the teachers.

Lucas was excited. He missed Maya a lot-- they had been something like enemies but not really for the past three years. They used to be a lot closer, but ever since Lucas had chosen Riley, Maya had slowly faded out of his life. She still hung out with Riley and Zay, and would talk to Farkle and Isadora, but she didn’t even bat an eye when it came to Lucas. He wasn’t dating Riley anymore-- in fact, he hadn’t been for two years-- but Maya still didn’t speak much to him. She didn’t like or comment on his photos on instagram anymore, she didn’t text, wouldn’t sit with him at lunch, and she never volunteered to work with him in class. Mr. Matthews (who somehow was their teacher again, unsurprisingly) had assigned them to work on the project together, and Lucas was a little suspicious that Mr. Matthews had ulterior motives. Riley’s father had always been mindful of the friend group’s dynamic, and must have noticed the rift between Maya and Lucas early on. It didn’t matter to Lucas, though. He wanted desperately to have Maya back into his life again. He missed her a lot more than he would admit to his friends. He missed her a lot more than he would admit to himself.

Lucas didn’t like keeping secrets, but he didn’t want to spark any conflicts. He didn’t think it was smart to confess that there was still a special place in his heart locked away for Maya. He had no idea what issues it might cause. His feelings were pushed down so far and denied so much that Lucas had ultimately forced himself to believe he didn’t like Maya anymore. He hadn’t hidden anything like this in a long time. It gave him an odd sense of déjà vu.

The truth was, he still had feelings for Maya. Lucas didn’t fully realize it, but he still liked her. He loved her blonde curls, her three inch heels, her alluring lavender scent. It was getting difficult to deny the fact that he cared so much about her and their relationship. With the project, she was being forced to spend time with him, so Lucas figured he would try to be her friend again. Maya had an unhealthy habit of not showing how she really felt, so maybe, just maybe, she _didn’t_ hate him, despite how she had been acting for the past three years. It was possible that maybe, just maybe, she missed him, too.

Lucas’ phone began to ring, snapping him out of his Maya-centered daze. A facetime call from

Zay. His friend started talking immediately after Lucas picked up.

“Lucas, what’s up?” Zay asked, smiling. “Farkle’s over here, doing homework. Nerd.”

Lucas checked the clock before answering. “Maya’s coming over in about 15 minutes so we can work on our APUSH project.”

“Oh, really? I thought she wasn’t talking to you.”

“Mr. Matthews assigned partners,” Lucas explained, sitting down on the counter. “So she agreed to come over to work on it tonight.”

Zay nodded. “Alright, sounds cool. Good luck.”

Lucas frowned. “What do you mean by _that?”_

Zay laughed, shaking his head in disbelief. “I mean, that hurricane shit is a little scary.”

“It’s not gonna hit,” Lucas said, but Zay invited him.

“And in addition to that, bro, Maga hasn’t said more than a few consecutive words to you since freshman year. I hope you’re able to hold conversation for however long she’ll be there.”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence, Zay,” Lucas replied sarcastically, rolling his eyes. Unfortunately, the thing was, Lucas knew that Zay was right. How would he be able to speak to Maya after so much time apart? What was there to say? That he regretted leaving her behind, going straight to Riley without looking back? Sure, she had sent him away, but Maya had always had a habit of pushing people she cared about away. Was it possible? Did she still have feelings for him?

Damn, he was starting to overthink.

Like that was something new.

Lucas must have looked like how he felt, because Zay’s expression softened. “I’m sure it’ll be okay. You’ll make it okay.”

“Mhm.”

Zay rolled his eyes. “You’re practically known for your conflict resolution skills.”

“Not this time, Zay.” Lucas sighed.

“Maya can’t be that hard too handle. I mean, you’re _you.”_  
Lucas let out a deep sigh, running a hand through his hair. “She hates me.”  
Zay shook his head. “Nah, she doesn’t.”

Lucas clenched his jaw, letting his hand drop back to his side. In all honestly, he couldn’t possibly see how Maya couldn’t hate him-- fuck, he’d hate himself too, doing what he had done. It was a  stupid, insensitive move. He felt immensely guilty, a feeling that had never truly gone away. He knew he had been young and confused, but it wasn’t an excuse, right?

He could never stand to hurt her.

“Look, Zay, there’s no point in dwelling on this. We’ll do our project, she’ll go home, and everything will go back to normal.” Zay gave in, but didn’t seem completely convinced of Lucas’ apathy. Lucas wasn’t, either.

-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-

Maya arrived four minutes past her scheduled arrival time, but Lucas couldn’t tell whether it was out of spite or her general tardiness. She wasn’t hinting towards any emotion as she walked inside, closing her umbrella and taking off her raincoat. She said nothing as she squeezed the rain water out of her hair and peeled off her boots. Lucas stood there awkwardly, leaning against the kitchen counter as she did so, trying not to look directly at her. There was tension in the air, so thick he could cut it with a knife.

“Alright, Friar.” Maya’s voice was cold, her tone firm and distant. He could already tell that she was locking him out. Of course. “Let’s just get this project shit done and over with.” Without another word, she walked off towards the office space, carrying a bag with supplies for the project. Lucas blew out some air, trailing after her apprehensively. The office was in a loft above the apartment. There was a ladder by the bathroom, which led to the carpeted room. It wasn’t very big. The walls were average height, but the ceiling was sloped upwards, like the top of the room was a triangle. It was cozy, giving off a log cabin vibe-- there were windows on two of the walls, and the walls were wooden. It was Lucas’ favorite room in the apartment.

The office was a nice contrast from the messy kitchen, Lucas thought as he climbed up the ladder. When he was fully in the room, Maya was already sitting cross legged in the center, where she had laid out a red posterboard. She had some markers with her, gluesticks, and bottles of glitter glue still in her bag. Maya was silent, watching him as he settled down on the other side of the posterboard. He couldn’t read the look on her face as she ran a hand through her hair, watching him cryptically.

“Maya--”

“Let’s just work.” She snapped. “Do you have it all printed?” They had written the project out in class on google docs, Maya angrily rewriting most of his text, slowly driving him insane.

“Yeah, I did,” he said, scratching the back of his neck. He wasn’t returning her cold stares, and he wasn’t speaking in the same haughty voice she was. He didn’t have the energy for this. He couldn’t pretend to return the animosity she was exhibiting.

He could hear the rainfall growing heavier, and he let out a deep sigh. To him, the weather was fitting, but he remembered that Maya liked the rain. She always had, even if she didn’t like storms. Maybe that would put her in a good enough mood to talk…no, he was just grasping at straws. But that didn’t mean he wouldn’t try.

“Maya.” She looked up, furrowing her brow.

“Aren’t we working?” She asked, her tone ice cold. It was more of a statement than a question.

Lucas studied her face, watching her as she watched him. Her eyes were narrowed slightly. She seemed guarded, like she was holding back. He wished she would let him back in. “Maya, why are you so mad at me?”

She hesitated before answering. “I’m not.” She said cooly.

Lucas scoffed. “Maya, you’ve barely spoken to me in years. We used to be friends. What--”

“Drop it.” She said. But he wasn’t giving up that easily.

Lucas wanted to know. He wanted to understand what was going on in her head. He wanted her back in his life. There wasn’t anything on the line. He had nothing to lose. “Maya--”

“Would you stop saying my name so much?” She snapped angrily. “I’m sick of this. I don’t want to talk to you.”

“Maya—“ He didn’t have a chance to retort before she cut him off again.

“I mean it!” Maya said sharply.

“Why do you hate me?”

There it was. The words had just slipped out, but Lucas found himself not regretting it one bit. He was intent on figuring this out. He needed to. It hurt too much not knowing what he had done to drive her awa  and what he could do to fix it. He had his inklings on what she was so angry about, but…Lucas knew Maya didn’t like to let her guard down, but somehow, someway, she seemed conflicted. It was like she didn’t know whether to admit the truth or not. It was like perhaps she wasn’t so sure what she was mad about herself.

Maya bit her lip, looking away from him before answering. When she spoke, her voice was subdued. “I don’t hate you.”

“Then what-- why-- why have you been so...distant?” Lucas stammered, frowning. “You’ve been acting like you hate me. For a while now.”

Maya shook her head. “I don’t hate you, Lucas.” Her tone was softer. She was probably tired of the charade. Lucas was, too.

“Then why did you stop talking to me?”

Maya sighed. She hesitated for a moment, blinking back tears. When she finally spoke, her voice was subdued. “I didn’t stop talking to you because I hate you. I stopped talking to you because I loved you,” she said softly. “It hurt too much to pretend that it was all okay.”

Maya looked back at him. Finally, she was being completely vulnerable with him-- no brick wall between them. He supposed she was exhausted from pretending. He was tired, too, from feeling so guilty for letting her down, for hurting her. He had never wanted to.

Maya closed her eyes for a moment, letting out a deep breath. “It doesn’t matter anymore. You didn’t care enough to try to make it— _us_ — work. I wasn’t either. It was a long time ago. Let’s just let it go. Let me let you go.”

Lucas moved the posterboard to the side, crawling over to sit next to her. He felt her stiffen in response. When he looked at Maya, her eyes were wet, and she was biting her lip. It all made a lot more sense to Lucas now.

“Maya…” He trailed off, unsure of what to say. His mind was racing with a million thoughts, but none of them were coherent enough for him to form into words. She looked away from him quickly.

“You know what? This is stupid.” Maya pulled herself up, running a hand through her hair. “I shouldn’t have said anything. I shouldn’t have come over in the first place. We can just get new partners. I’m sure Mr. Matthews--”

“Stop pushing me away!” Lucas suddenly exclaimed, standing up as well. Her eyes widened, looking up at him. She seemed frightened-- not of him, but of something much deeper. “All I want-- I want you back in my life.” She said nothing to stop him, so he continued. “ You think I don’t care? That I didn’t have feelings for you? That I don’t-- that I don’t want you back?” He said exasperatedly, running a hand through his hair, ruffling it. “I want--”

_Boom._

_Crash._

Maya yelped, whipping her head around in the direction of the disturbance. The wind had picked up, was howling, stronger than it had been earlier. They must have been too wrapped up in their conversation to notice.

But it was hard not to notice the tree that had fallen into the side of the wall. Lucas was frozen for a moment, trying to remember what to do in a storm. Did you go in one corner and hide? No, that was a lockdown drill. Did you kneel and cover your head with your hands? No, that was a tornado...Lucas had been so sure that the hurricane wouldn’t hit, but he had been wrong. Apparently, that was something he was going to have to get used to.

Maya backed up to the wall, sinking down to the floor. She had gone pale.

_Boom._

_Crash._

Lucas couldn’t focus on anything but that, and the fact that Maya looked completely petrified with fear.

_Boom._

_Crash._

It was strange. Lucas didn’t understand how he hadn’t noticed the storm was picking up. His brain must have short-circuited. It was surreal, seeing the tree coming through the wall, feeling the wind blowing through the damage. He had heard about things like this happening, but hadn’t ever thought it would happen to him.

Lucas could barely hear his own thoughts over the winds, but Maya was too close to a window, and there was a storm--

“Maya!” He shouted, but she didn’t seem to hear him. She was frozen in place, eyes wide in fear. “Maya! We have to get downstairs!” She locked eyes with him, but she didn’t move. Lucas hurried across the room to where Maya was curled up, knees to her chest. Without hesitation, Lucas picked her up, hooking his left arm under her knees, using the other to support her back. She immediately wrapped her arms around his neck, tucking her head under his chin, face buried in the crook of his neck. She was trembling.  

Lucas kicked open the trap door. How was he going to get down the ladder?

“Maya-- I need to--” She whimpered, clinging to him. She wasn’t letting go any time soon. Lucas sighed. He had no time to overthink. He had no idea how bad the storm would get, and he couldn’t risk it.

Throwing caution to the wind-- no pun intended-- Lucas lowered himself to the top rung before jumping. He hadn’t been far from the ground to begin with, but it was still a jarring land, and Maya cried out, tightening her grip. She was shaking. Lucas cursed himself for forgetting how terrified she was of storms.

“Hey...it’s gonna be okay,” he murmured, holding her closer to him as he hurried to the only windowless room they had-- the broom closet. There were shelves built into the wall, but nothing that would fall on them.

Lucas closed the door, his heart beating out of his chest. He sat down under a shelf, setting Maya down beside him. She let go of him, slumping against the wall in defeat. She was still shaking.

She reached over and grabbed his arm, her grip tight. Lucas looked over at her to see she was already gazing at him. “Lucas…” She mumbled. “I’m scared.”

“I know.” He swallowed before replying. This was the first time she had ever said anything like that to him. “It’ll be okay.”

“I can’t believe I’m going to die in a broom closet surrounded by cleaning supplies,” Maya said, ending with a mirthless chuckle.

“We’re not gonna die,” Lucas said. “We’re in a safe place.”

“I don’t want to die in your broom closet surrounded by cleaning supplies.”

Lucas frowned. He wanted to help calm her down, to make her feel safe, something he hadn’t done in a long time. “Well, you know, at least we’re not outside, or upstairs…the winds would probably blow us away and kill us...they’re, like, the most dangerous part of hurricanes…”

Maya spoke up. “That’s a myth.”

“What?”

“It’s actually, uh, the water rise that’s the most dangerous.”

“Oh. I was just trying to comfort you.”

“Oh.”

“Is it working?”

“Not really.” Maya paused for a moment, taking a deep, shuddering breath. “Keep talking.”

Lucas nodded, swallowing. “I, uh...remember I mentioned in eighth grade that I went to help in New Orleans after a Hurricane?”

“Do you have a point, or are you bragging?” Maya snapped, but her voice was still shaky.

“I promise, there’s a point,” Lucas said, laughing. Maya let herself smile softly, but she looked away from him all the same. “It brought all the people together. They...they helped strangers. They saved the lives of people they didn’t even know. It’s pretty damn amazing how something so bad can create something so good, you know?”

Maya bit her lip, leaning a bit closer to Lucas. “I always thought bad things just brought out the worst in people.” Her voice was quiet, and Lucas’ heart ached for her-- she sounded scared and vulnerable, a side of her she never showed him. “That’s all I’ve known, anyway.”

“Not all the time.” Maya looked up at him, her eyes shining with something Lucas hadn’t seen in a long time.

“My parents fought all the time, and eventually, my dad left. And when Riley betrayed me during that hellscape of a freshman year...and…”

“I get it. I’m sorry you’ve been through so much.”

She opened her mouth to speak, but a loud crash startled her before she could say anything. She cried out, shrinking back against the wall. Lucas had no idea what had caused the loud noise, but he was more focused and concerned about how frightened Maya looked. Their gazes locked, and something in Lucas woke, a wish he had denied himself of every time before.

Amidst the loud winds, the heavy rain, and the destruction that was sure to be just outside that little room, it all seemed to quiet when Lucas took Maya’s face in his hands, crashing his lips to hers. Maya immediately melted into it, holding onto his wrists as she kissed him back.

The kiss was new and familiar all at once, and Lucas didn’t want to ever pull away. Maya’s lips were warm on his, and Lucas felt safer than he had the rest of the storm. There was something so familiar about her touch, and although they had never kissed before, Lucas was nearly brought back several years to a campfire in Texas, a night that could have been so different if he hadn’t been so scared.

Lucas was terrified too, but something had changed in him during his time apart from Maya. He was tired of wasting his time fearing the future.

Lucas pulled back, his breathing heavy. Maya let go of his wrists, and Lucas removed his hands from her hair, swallowing thickly. There was a moment where neither of them moved.

Maya was the first to speak. “Oh,” she said softly, swallowing, her breathing shallow and quick. She wasn’t shaking from her fear of the storm anymore. No, something else, something new and exciting, was stealing her breath. “Oh,” she said again, and then went quiet.

Lucas furrowed his brow. “I’m sorry, I didn’t-”

“You don’t have to be sorry, Huckleberry,” Maya murmured, cutting him off. Lucas was feeling too much deja vu. How many times would they have to relive the past before they fixed the present? “I…” Maya closed her eyes, taking a deep breath, exhaling slowly to calm herself. “I’m glad you did that.” She bit her lip, turning her head slightly to catch his heavy gaze.

“Yeah?” He replied quietly. Maya nodded.

“Yeah.” She looked away. “I missed you.”

Lucas must have been knocked out in the storm, because there was no way he was finally hearing her saying those words to him. How had three years of separation brought them to this? Not that Lucas was complaining, though. He had been waiting for a moment like this. Sure, their surroundings weren’t what he had imagined, but in that moment, he didn’t care. “Maya…”

“Don’t.” Maya shook her head. “Don’t say anything else. Just...hold me, would you, you big doof?”

Lucas immediately wrapped his arms around her in reply, pulling her close to him. She immediately curled up in his embrace, her head against his chest. Her planted a kiss on the top of her head, pulling her flush against him.

Lucas wasn’t sure if she heard it over the winds, but he murmured those three words quietly as he held her.

He meant them, too.

-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-

Eventually, the winds died down, and it was safe for the two of them to exit the closet. Lucas reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. There were about seven missed calls from his mother. A little guilty, Lucas clicked on the notification to call her back. “Just calling my mom,” he said to Maya, who nodded, taking out her phone as well. She hadn’t said anything since he’d said he loved her. Lucas wasn’t sure if it was because she heard him, or if she was embarrassed, or maybe still a little shaken.

His mom picked up right away. When she spoke, she sounded panicked and furious all at once. “Lucas Jacob Friar, I swear to God, when I call you, you _pick up your phone-”_

“Mom, I’m fine,” Lucas laughed. “It’s all good. Except a tree fell into the office.”

_“What?”_

“It didn’t hit me, though.” Lucas paused. “Also, Maya’s here, too. She’s fine.”

“Oh, right. I forgot she was coming over.”

“Yeah. We stayed in the broom closet under the shelves.”

“You’re always good in a crisis, huh, Luke?” His mom laughed. “Well, I’m glad you’re safe. I’ll talk to your dad about the damage…but don’t think I’m not still angry.”

“Sounds good. Love you, Mom.”

“Love you too, Luke.”

Lucas hung up, tucking his phone back in his pocket. Maya looked up from hers, sending a text, and turning her phone off as well. “Thank you,” Maya mumbled, avoiding his gaze. “I wasn’t in a great place during the storm, and I’m...I’m glad you were there for me.”

Lucas nodded, unable to contain his soft smile. “Any time, Maya.”

Maya sighed, turning around and pulling on her shoes. “Guess I should be going, then…”

“Wait.” Lucas grabbed her arm, although his grip was lose as not to hurt her. She froze, looking over her shoulder at him. “We have to...we can’t just go back to how we were before.”

“What do you mean?” She asked quietly.

Lucas frowned, searching for the words. “I…” She looked expectantly at him, something shining in her eyes Lucas didn’t recognize. “I can’t...it’s been awful these past three years! I want you back in my life! I don’t want to just go back to pretending the other doesn’t exist.”

Maya stayed silent, but she didn’t break the gaze.

“You deserve someone who doesn’t hurt you. And I know I did. But…” He let go of her arm, and she slowly turned to face him. He swallowed. “Look, you can leave if you want. I’m not going to stop you. But if you’d forgive me…”

Maya blinked a couple times, still not saying anything.

“Please.”

Maya hesitated before grabbing the collar of his shirt and pulling him to her, pulling him into a heated and passionate kiss. Lucas was caught off guard, but he kissed her back, wrapping his arms around her.

She pulled back a few seconds later, her face flushed. “I don’t want to ignore you anymore.”

Lucas was at a loss for words. All he could do was beam down at her.

“I’ll text you tonight,” Maya said, a bit breathless.

“Sounds like a plan.”

She smiled at him before grabbing her things and walking out the door. Lucas stood there even after the door closed, still feeling her lips on his, his heart beating fast.

The whole day had sent him into a stupor. He knew there was still work to be done in his relationship with Maya, but Lucas was willing to do it. And he knew that no matter what, he hadn’t lost her again. It would be hard to get back to where they had been, and it was likely their relationship wouldn’t be the same as before, but Lucas knew that they would be fine.

He loved her.

That, he knew, would be enough.

**Author's Note:**

> i’m on tumblr (alynelsons) and ig (japrlls) <3


End file.
